Christmas Breakfast II: Gingerbread Waffles with Apple Cider Syrup

Ever since I made Marion Cunningham's Yeast Waffles, it spoiled me for all other waffle recipes. Delicate and delicious...the yeast makes all the difference.
I can't remember where I came upon this particular recipe (Pinterest?), but because I'm making lots of gingerbread recipes this season, it caught my attention and once I saw yeast as an ingredient, I copied it immediately. And yes, they were as light as Marion's recipe but with the added pleasure of that gingerbread flavor, color and fragrance in the house. You can serve them simply with confectioners sugar, maple syrup, or make the apple cider syrup (recipe below) that I tried. You'll have some happy faces around your Christmas breakfast table.

Gingerbread Belgian Waffles
From The Examiner

Ingredients:
2 packages active dry yeast (4 to 5 tsp.)
2 cups lukewarm milk
1/2 cup molasses
4 large eggs, separated, room temperature
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
3 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
2 tsp. ground ginger
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
2/3 cups brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup melted butter (4 ounces = 1 stick)

Method:
Sprinkle yeast over warm milk; stir to dissolve. Beat egg yolks and add to yeast mixture with vanilla. Sift together flour, salt, and sugar; add to liquid ingredients. Stir in melted butter and combine thoroughly. Beat the egg whites until stiff and carefully fold into batter. Let mixture stand in a warm place about 45 minutes or until it doubles in bulk. Use 1-1/3 cups mix per waffle. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Yield: about 6 waffles


Apple Cider Syrup
From Southern Food

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon butter
2 cups apple cider
1 cup brown sugar
2 cinnamon sticks

Method:
Melt the butter and add the remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil while stirring. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until reduced by half to about 1 to 1 1/4 cups. This will take about 15 minutes. The syrup will thicken as it cools.